Manufacture of wooden shims



Aug. 9, 1932. SHIPLEY l,87@ 65 MANUFACTURE OF WOODEN SHIMS Filed Feb. 6, 1951 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR. Gram 5 sap/ K A 1932- G. B. SHIPLEY 1,870,655

MANUFACTURE OF WOODEN SHIMS Filed- Feb. 6, 1931 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 6 @IN TOR.

1"0 6' B Y /O J Patented Aug. 9, 1932 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE GRANT B. SHIPLEY, OF PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO THE VI 001) PRE- SERVING CORPORATION, A CORPORATIGN OF DELAWARE MANUFACTURE OF WOODEN SHIMS Application filed February This invention relates to the manufacture of wooden shims, and more particularly to the manufacture of compressed shims of the type adapted for use, after being subjected to wood preserving treatment, in connection with the laying of modern railway tracks.

It is an object of the invention to facilitate the large scale production of shims of this character.

Further objects are to simplify and econ omiZe methods of manufacturing shimsof this character, and to increase the speed and capacity thereof.

Still further objects are to provide an ap- 15 paratus for this manufacture which is simple and economical in construction and operation, not likely to get out of order, and otherwise well adapted for the purposes set forth. I

ther objects and features of novelty will be apparent as the followin description proceeds, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a plan view of apparatus for 25 the manufacture of wooden shims, intermediate portions thereof being broken out to condense the illustration;

Fig. 2 is a vertical section taken along the line HII of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 3 is an elevation of the apparatus shown in Figs. 1 and 2.

The tendency to increased weight of rolling stock, and consequent increase in the size of railway rails, together with many other factors of modern development, have contributed to causing radical changes in the laying of modern railway track. According to one modern construction, the tie plate is provided with two ribs between which the rail is placed and a wooden shim is inserted bet-ween the ribs under the rail as the tracks are laid.

Hard wood is preferred to soft wood for this use, because soft wood cannot withstand the loads involved. However, by giving the soft wood a permanent compression before installation, the soft wood shim may be enabled to function in the manner of a more expensive iard wood shim. The pres ent invention is directed to the large scale 6, 1931. Serial No. 513,885.

production of initially and permanently compressed soft wood shims for the purposes hereinbefore set forth.

The wood from which the shims are to be manufactured is supplied in strips of greater thickness, and preferably of greater width than the shims to be manufactured. The strips may be of practically any length, but preferably such as to balance the cost of material against the cost of handling.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, the compressing mechanism comprises a pair of rolls 2 which, in the form shown, are mounted one above the other in a frame 3. The rolls 2 are provided with shafts 4 journalled in blocks 5 mounted in vertical slides 6. Springs 7 are mounted between the blocks 5 and pressure is exerted thereupon by hand operated screws 8.

The rolls 2 are driven in opposite directions by gearing 9 shown in Fig. 1, receiving power from a drive shaft 10 connected to a motor or other source of power not shown. These rolls are preferably of alength exceeding twice the width of the shim to be manufactured, as the preferred operation contemplates the rolling or compressing of two or more strips at the same time.

The frame 3 carries bearings 11 in which is journalled a shaft 12 carrying a plurality of circular saws 13. The shaft 12 carries a pulley driven by a belt 14: which passes over the corresponding pulley of a motor 15 which is shown in Fig. 3 as being mounted within the base of the frame 3.

A feed table 16 is mounted at one side of the frame 3 so that strips of wood may be fed therefrom between the rolls 2. A corresponding delivery table 17 is mounted on the other side of the rolls and it receives the compressed strips therefrom.

Mounted below the delivery table 17 are a plurality of transversely extending transfer chains 18 which extend between sprockets on a counter shaft 19 and a drive shaft 20. The shaft 20 has keyed thereto a sprocket 21, which is driven by a chain 22 from a sprocket 23 rigid with a bevel gear 24. This bevel gear is driven by a bevel pinion 25 keyed to a shaft 26 extending from a gear box 27 which is driven by a motor 28. The shaft 26 also drives other mechanism to be hereinafter described.

The transfer chains 18 are adapted to receive strips from the delivery table 17 and carry the same to a gang of circular saws 30. These saws are mounted in pairs on the opposite ends of short shafts 31. Each of the shafts 31 carries a central pulley 32, and these pulleys 32 are driven by belts 33 passing over larger pulleys 34 carried by a main drive shaft 35. The shaft 35 is driven by a belt 36 from a motor 37.

A delivery conveyor 40 extends longitudinally below the plane of the transfer chains 18, being driven by a pulley 41 carried by the shaft 26 hereinbefore referred to. The other end of the delivery conveyor passes over an idler pulley 42 at the other end of the delivery table frame.

An elevator 43 is mounted adjacent the delivery end of the conveyor 40, in order to receive the shims therefrom. The elevator 43 comprises a belt carrying lugs 44 adapted to engage the shims.

This belt passes over an upper adjustable pulley 45, and a lower driving pulley 46 which is driven from the shaft 26 by means of a belt 47. A delivery chute comprising branches 50 and 51 controlled by a gate, not shown, is mounted under the delivery end of the elevator 40.

In operation, the strips are fed from the feed table 16 to the rolls 2 and they pass therebetween for the compression step. Preferably, two or more strips pass between the rolls side by side, in alternate or staggered relation in a plurality of rows. Thus the front end of a first strip 52 is inserted between the rolls from one side of the feed table and while this strip is passing therethrough, the front end of a second strip 53 is started from the other side of the feed table. When the first strip 52 is completely compressed, the rear end thereof will pass through and beyond the rolls while an intermediate portion of the second strip 53 is being compressed.

Hence, a third strip 54 may be aligned with the first strip 52 and fed between the rolls. The presence of the second strip 53 serves to prevent sudden release of the pressure exerted by the screw 8, and any consequent impact of the apparatus. The presence of the second strip 53 between the rolls will also facilitate the insertion of the third strip therebetween. Similarly, a fourth strip will follow the second strip 53 and thus the process may be continued indefinitely.

The compressed front ends of the strips, as they pass from between the rolls 2 onto the delivery table 17, are engaged by the circular saws 13 which serve to make longitudinal cuts in the compressed strips. The action of the saws 30, the strips rolls 2 in compressing the strips has a tendency to increase the width thereof.

The combined widening and compressing of the strip results in disruption of the outer fibres to the extent that the side edges of the strip may be so crushed as to be useless. Hence these crushed side edges are trimmed off by the circular saws 13 as the strip pass from between the rollers.

The alternate feeding of the strips is also of advantage at the dellvery end of the rolls. The staggered relation of the strips being delivered therefrom permits an operator to pick up the strips one by one and place them on the transfer chains 18.

Referring to Fig. 1, the operator may stand in front of the delivery table 17 and when the first strip 52 is free of the rolls,'it will be deposited on the near side of the delivery table. The operator may draw this strip toward him so that it will slide off of the delivery table 17 onto the front end of the transfer chains 18.

The second strip 53 is delivered onto the far side of the delivery table 17 and the operator will push this strip away from him so that it will slide onto the transfer chains 18 between the delivery table and the saws 30. Of course, the strips may all be moved toward or away from the operator if desired, particularly if the strips are fed in a single row instead of two rows as described.

The saws 30 are spaced apart, having a. net or clear distance therebetween equal to the length of the shim to be manufactured. As the chains 18 feed the trimmed strips to the are cut transversely into shim lengths. The shims carried by the transfer chains 18 fall ofl onto the top of the delivery conveyor 40 which in turn deposits them onthe elevator 43.

As shown in Fig. 1, the elevator 43 delivers the manufactured shims to the delivery chute, and by operation of the gate, the output of the plant may be directed selectively to the branches 50 and 51. I Obviously, freight cars may be lined up on a track beneath the delivery ends of the chutes, and the gates may be controlled to load the freight cars in a manner well known in the loading'art.

While one embodiment of the invention has been illustrated and described in such'detail as to enable anyone skilled in the art to practice the invention, nevertheless it is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited to any of the details disclosed, other than as necessitated by the development of the prior art. Instead it will be recognized that the invention embraces such embodiments of the broad idea as fall within the scope of the appended claims, it being obvious that various changes may be resorted to with respect to the disclosed embodiment without departing from the spirit of the invention. I

I claim as my invention:

1. A method of manufacturing wooden shims, which comprises simultaneously and progressively exerting sufiicient pressure against both sides of a strip of wood from one end toward the other to reduce it to a permanent predetermined thickness, leaving the side edges of said strip unconfined during the compressing step to permit increase in width thereof, trimming the side edges of said strip to reduce the same to the desired width, by cutting said strip from the compressed end toward the uncompressed end during the compressing step, and cutting the compressed and trimmed strip transversely to divide the same into shims.

2. A method of manufacturing wooden shims, which comprises passing strips of wood in staggered side-by-side relation between compressing rolls, whereby there is at least one strip between the rolls at all times, trimming the side edges of the compressed portions of said strips as they emerge from between said rolls, and cutting the compressed and trimmed strips into shim lengths.

3. Apparatus for manufacturing wooden shims, comprising, in combination, compressing mechanism adapted to permanently compress a strip of wood of greater thickness than the shims to be manufactured, to reduce said strip to the desired thickness, means for continuously cutting said strip longitudinally, said means serving to trim the side edges of the compressed strip and to produce a compressed and trimmed strip of the width and thickness of the shims to be manufactured, and means for cutting said compressed and trimmed strip into shim lengths.

4. Apparatus for manufacturing wooden shims comprising, in combination, compressing mechanism adapted to permanently reduce the thickness of a strip of wood, cutters adapted to receive the compressed strip from said compressing mechanism and trim the side edges thereof as the strip'passes continuously through the compressing mechanism, and means for cutting the compressed and trimmed strip into shim lengths.

5. Apparatus for manufacturing wooden shims comprising, in combination, a pair of coacting pressure rollers adapted to penmanently reduce the thickness of a strip of wood, saws for trimming the crushed side edges of the strip being compressed by said rollers, a gang of saws adapted to cut said strip into shim lengths, and means for causing relative bodily movement of said compressed and trimmed strip and said gang of saws.

6. Apparatus for manufacturing wooden shims comprising, in combination, means for compressing a strip of wood progressively from one end to the other to permanently reduce the thickness thereof, a table adapted to receive the compressed strip, means between said compressing means and said table for continuously severing longitudinally the compressed strip as it passes from the compressing means to produce a strip of shim width, means for severing the compressed strip transversely into shim lengths, means for feedin said strip to said transversely severing means, and a conveyor receiving the shims from said transversely severing means.

7. Apparatus for manufacturing wooden shims comprising, in combination, a feed table, a pair of coacting pressure rolls, a delivery table, longitudinal cutters mounted between said rolls and said delivery table, a gang of transverse cutters adjacent said delivery table, a transverse conveyor adapted to transfer a strip of wood from said delivery table and feed the same to said transverse saws, and a delivery conveyor receiving the shims from said transverse saws.

8. The method of manufacturing wooden shims, which comprises subjecting a flat strip of soft wood to permanent and uniform compression thereof by passing said strip in the direction of the grain thereof between smooth surfaced cylindrical rollers spaced apart a distance less than the thickness of the strip, whereby the soft wood is given a smooth surface and dense texture similar to hardwood, the thickness being decreased and the side edges expanded by said compression step, passing said strip by movement imparted by said rollers between saws perpendicular to the axes of said rollers and spaced apart the desired width of the shim, whereby the side edges expanded by said compression step are removed and the strip is reduced to the desired width, and finally sawing the compressed and trimmed strip into shim lengths.

9. A plant for the manufacture of wooden shims, comprising in combination, a pair of smooth surfaced cylindrical rollers spaced apart the desired thickness of the shim to be manufactured whereby a strip of soft wood of greater thickness fed thereto may be compressed and given a smooth surface and dense texture similar to hardwood, a delivery table, a pair of saws between said rollers and said delivery table and spaced apart the desired width of the shims to be manufactured, means for driving said rollers whereby said strip of soft wood fed thereto is forced by said rollers between said saws and onto said delivery table, means for driving said saws to cut off the side edges expanded by said rollers and to reduce the strip to the desired width, a gang of transverse saws adjacent said delivery table and spaced apart the desired length of the shim, and a transverse conveyor adapted to receive the compressed and trimmed strip from said delivery table and feed said strip to said transverse saws to out the same into shim lengths.

10. The method of manufacturing wooden shims, which comprises imparting to a strip of wood a continuous longitudinal movement whichis maintained while the strip is compressed to a predetermined thickness. and while the compressed strip is severed longitudinally along lines spaced apart the desired width of the shims, and cutting the strip transversely into shims of the desired length.

11. The method of manufacturing wooden shims from relativelylong strips of soft wood materially thicker than the desired shims, which comprises imparting to each strip a longitudinal movement which continues while the strip is progressively compressed from one end toward the other to permanently reduce it to a predetermined thickness and while the strip is severed longitudinally to produce a strip of the desired width, and cutting the strip transversely to produce shims of the desired length. 7

12. The method of manufacturing wooden shimsfrom'rela'tively long strips of soft wood materially thicker than the desired shims, which comprises imparting to each strip a longitudinal movement which continues while the strip is progressively compressed from one end toward the other to permanently reduce it to a predetermined thickness and while the strip is severed longitudinally along parallel lines toward the end last compressed to produce a substantially smooth edged strip of the desired width, and severing the strip transversely to produce shims of the desired length.

13. The method of manufacturing wooden shims, which comprises passing relatively long strips of wood materially thicker than the desired shims between compressing rolls which progressively compress the strips to a predetermined thickness and impart thereto a longitudinal movement which continues while the strips emerging from the rolls are severed longitudinally to the desired. width, and severing the strips transversely to produce shims of the desired length.

14. The method of manufacturing wooden shims which comprises imparting to strips of wood a longitudinal movement which continues while the strips pass through a compression zone wherein they are compressed to a predetermined thickness and while the compressed strips emerging from the compression zone are severed longitudinally to the desired width, interrupting the movement, and severing the strips transversely to produce shims of the desired length, the strips being passed through the compression zone in staggered parallel series.

15. The method of manufacturing wooden shims, which comprises passing relatively long strips of wood materially thicker than the desired shims between compressing rolls which progressively compress the strips to a predetermined thickness and impart thereto a longitudinal movement which continues while the strips emerging from the rolls are severed longitudinally to the desired width,

and severing the strips transversely to produceshims of the desired length, the strips being passed between the compressing rolls in staggered parallel relation, whereby there is at least one strip between the rolls at all times. 7

16. The method of manufacturing wooden Shims from relatively long strips of soft wood materially thicker than the desired shims, which comprises passing the st longitudinally between compressing roll: which progressively compress the strips from one end toward the other to permanently reduce their thickness to the desired extent and which impart to the strips a longitudinal movement which continues while the strips emerging from the rolls are severed longitudinally to producecompressed strips of the desired width, interrupting the movement, and severing the stripstransversely to produce shims of the desired length, the strips being passed between the compressing rolls in staggered side-by-side relation whereby there is at least one strip between the rolls at all times.

17 Apparatus for manufacturing wooden shims, which comprises means for compressing parallel strips of wood, means for simultaneously severing longitudinally parallel compressed strips emerging from said compressing means, and means for transversely severing the longitudinally severed strips to produce shims of the desired length.

' 18. Apparatus for manufacturing wooden shims, which comprises a pair of coacting pressure rolls adapted to compress strips of wood passing therethrough to the desired reduced thickness, a plurality of saws adjacent to the pressure rollsand adapted to sever parallel strips emerging therefrom along longitudinal linesspaced apart a distance corresponding to the desired width of the shims, and means for transversely severing the strips into units of the desired length.

19. In apparatus for manufacturing wooden shims, in combination, a pair of coacting pressure rolls adapted to compress parallel strips of wood to permanently reduce the thickness thereof and to impart a longitudinal movement to said strips, a delivery table adapted to receive parallel compressed strips from said rolls, and a plurality of cutters arranged in pairs between said rolls and said table, each pair of cuttersbeing adapted to sever a compressed strip of wood emerging from said rolls along parallel lines spaced apart the desired width of-the shims.

20. In apparatus for manufacturing wooden shims, a pair of coacting pressure rolls adapted to compress parallel strips of wood to a predetermined thickness, a feed table adapted to guide parallel strips of wood approaching said pressure rolls, and a plural ity of saws arranged in pairs adjacent to said rolls, the pairs of saws being so located with respect to the rolls and the feed table that strips of wood emerging from the rolls are severed longitudinally by the saws to produce compressed strips having the desired width and thickness.

21. Apparatus for manufacturing wooden shims, comprising in combination a pair of coacting pressure rolls adapted to compress parallel strips of wood passing therebetween to a predetermined desired thickness a feed table adjacent to said rolls and adapted to guide strips of wood approaching said rolls into parallel alignment, a delivery table adapted to receive strips of wood compressed by said rolls, a plurality of saws arranged in pairs between said rolls and said delivery table and so located with respect to the rolls and the feed table that parallel compressed strips emerging from the rolls are severed longitudinally to form strips having the desired width of the shims, a gang of saws adjacent the delivery table and adapted to sever the strips transversely into shims of the desired length, and conveying means adapted to feed strips of wood received by said delivery table to the gang of transverse saws.

22. Apparatus for manufacturing wooden shims, comprising in combination, a pair of coacting pressure rolls adapted to permanently compress parallel strips of wood materially thicker than the desired shims to a predetermined reduced thickness and adapted to impart a longitudinal movement to said strips, a feed table adjacent said rolls and adapted to guide strips of wood approaching said rolls into parallel alignment, a delivery table adapted to receive strips of wood compressed by said rolls, a plurality of saws arranged in pairs between said rolls and said delivery table and so located with respect to the rolls and the feed table that each of the parallel compressed strips of wood emerging from the rolls and impelled toward the delivery table thereby passes through a pair of saws and is severed longitudinally thereby along parallel lines spaced apart the desired width of the shims, a gang of transverse saws adjacent the delivery table and adapted to sever strips fed thereto into shims of the desired length, conveying means adapted to feed strips received by the delivery table to the gang of transverse saws, conveying means disposed near the gang of transverse saws and adapted to receive shims severed thereby, and driving means for the rolls, the saws, and the conveying means.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto subscribed my name this 31st day of January GRANT B. SHIPLEY. 

